All That Matters
by SayianWizard
Summary: Galen Stark is the second son of Ned and Catelyn Stark. Gifted with much more than an unusual physical appearance, Galen may well be just what the Starks need to even the odds in their favor for the hardships ahead. However, one thing is certain: He loves his family above all else and will not shy away from playing the Game of Thrones to protect them, by any means necessary.
1. A New Stark

**I do not own A Song of Ice and Fire series, it belongs to GRRM. **

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**All That Matters**

Eddard Stark quickly rode his stead back to Winterfell with as much haste as possible. He had just finished executing a deserter of the Night's Watch when he received the news. His wife had finally gone into labor with their second child.

It had been three years since Robb was born and the end Robert's Rebellion along with the beginning of his reign as the new King of the Seven Kingdoms. It had also been three years since he returned home to Catelyn with Jon Snow in tow, his "bastard," much to her betrayal and chagrin.

Though things had been tense between them at the beginning, especially with his insistence to raise Jon alongside Robb, but they had eventually warmed towards each other and ultimately come to love one another.

As Winterfell came within his sights, Ned couldn't help but feel excitement bubble in his chest. This would be the first time he was present for one of his children's birth. Due to Robert's Rebellion he wasn't able to greet Robb into the world or meet him until he was almost a year old. However, this time things would be different, he would know the child from the moment they were born.

Entering Winterfell's courtyard Ned quickly dismounted his horse and ran into the castle. Arriving outside the doors of his and Catelyn's bedchamber he was greeted by the castle steward Vayon Poole.

"She went into labor about three hours ago my lord," said Vayon as his lord approached.

Ned nodded at the man's words while standing in front of the bedchamber's doors. He stared straight at the doors wishing he could be inside with Catelyn supporting her but knowing it was inappropriate for men to be present during the birthing process stopped him.

Trying to keep his mind off her pained filled cries he turned towards Vayon. "There hasn't been word of any complications have there?"

Vayon shook his head. "No my lord. As far as I know everything is going fine."

Ned let out a sigh of relief at that. Catelyn's pregnancy had been very smooth with this child, more so than Robb's. No morning sickness, hardly any pain or discomfort though her appetite had been ravenous making them think at one point that she was carrying for two. It was good to know that the birth would continue in such a worry free fashion.

Over time Ned began to pace as the minutes ticked by and their seemed to be no lull in the labor until the birth neared its fourth hour. That's when there was silence soon broken by the wail of a babe.

Stopping in front of the doors Ned waited for few minutes, simply listening to the cries of the child, giving the healer's time to finish up. He was just about to enter when the door opened admitting him. There stood a midwife with a bright smile on her face as she greeted him before stepping aside. "The child is healthy and your lady wife is fine my lord."

Ned briefly acknowledged her words before moving towards his wife who held a buddle to her chest. Out of the corner of his eye Ned saw Maester Luwin, several servants and another midwife going about cleaning up the bedchamber. He saw Catelyn on the bed smiling at the babe with a tired but joyful expression. Looking up from the bundle her smile widened as she laid eyes on Ned.

"It's a beautiful baby boy Ned."

Walking closer to the bed Ned leaned over to get a closer look at the child. The child's facial features greatly resembled Catelyn's with his nose and cheekbones. Though he had his father's strong chin and tufts of dark hair on his head, though in a certain light there seemed to be streaks of gray in it.

"He's a beautiful child," Eddard agreed while smiling softly at the child.

The child released a wide yawn and shifted in his mother's arms before slowly opening his eyes for the first time. Ned and Catelyn gasped at the sight that greeted them.

His eyes were a glowing, misty, almost smoky light gray with bright flecks of blue surrounding the pupil.

"Ned?" questioned Catelyn in a slightly frightened voice.

Ned stared at the child trying to make sense of what he was seeing. This odd coloring was a trait of neither Houses Tully nor Stark though it seemed a remarkable mix of the two; the glow and moving mist like quality of the iris aside.

"Maester Luwin," he called.

The maester swiftly moved over to the couple to see what the matter was. "What can I help you with Lord Stark?"

"Look at the child's eyes. Have you ever heard of anything like this?"

The master peered closely at the child, a pensive expression on his face. He moved a finger in front of the child's eyes and watched as it followed the finger back and forth. Finally he shook his head. "I've never heard of such an occurrence, though it appears there's nothing wrong with the child's eyesight. I'll definitely look into the matter and see if I can find anything."

Both parents nodded in agreement while saying their goodbyes as the maester went off to begin his research. They both looked back down at the child, observing him as he closed his eyes and seemed to drift off into a quiet slumber.

"So what name should he be given?" asked Catelyn softly.

Ned stroked his chin as he thought about things. "Well I had planned on naming his Brandon, but it just doesn't seem an appropriate name now."

Catelyn nodded in understanding.

Ned pondered on the subject for several minutes before coming to a conclusion.

"His name shall be…..Galen Stark."

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**A/N: **This is my first A Song and Ice and Fire fanfic so please bare with me. If you enjoyed teaser of what's to come please review and let me know what you think or if your interested.


	2. Curiosity

**I do not own A Song of Ice and Fire, it belongs to GRRM.**

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**All That Matters**

If she were asked how it was to raise Galen. Catelyn would describe it as a surreal but infinitely interesting experience. The oddest occurrences would happen around him. One example would be his uncanny ability to sense when something bad was about to happen.

Once when Ned was about to leave to settle a dispute at Torren's Square, Galen had begun to wail uncontrollably. The behavior had baffled Catelyn since in the eight moons the child had been born, rarely did he cry or make much of a fuss often, and the intensity of his cries were also alarming.

Not long after he started and Ned had left to mount his stead did she hear the loud braying of a horse and the loud startled cries of people in the courtyard. Hurrying down with Galen in her arms and Robb and Jon at her heels Catelyn arrived to see Ned lying on the ground near a bucking horse that several stable hands were trying to calm down.

Apparently the horse had caught the scent of a mare in heat and lost control of itself. Ned was relatively fine but had broken his left arm and right leg. The moment she arrived at her husband's side the child had gradually calmed down though was still visibly upset.

There were other such occurrences of the same, like when Robb twisted his ankle, Jon got lost in the Wolfswood and when young Jory Cassel fell out of a tree while climbing.

Another odd thing was how unusually cold he was. No matter how much cloth she bundled him in or placed him near the fire he would remain the same temperature. She had asked Luwin about it and the maester had checked only to announce that it didn't negatively affect his health so it was simply something normal for him.

Then there were his eyes. When he was first born she would spend hours staring into them, enraptured by the barely discernable swirling movement and coloring. Even now when he was three years old and her time was mostly occupied with caring for her youngest child Sansa and pregnant with her fourth, she would still stop and stare into his eyes trying to figure out what the Gods had in store for him. They had a piercing quality about them and when he stared back at her it seemed like they held such wisdom in them.

Much like Robb, Galen was independent, preferring and taking enjoyment in being able to do things by himself without help from others. Though he didn't mind being smothered with affection by her like Robb sometimes did. Instead he accepted the attention with a loving reverence, clinging to her just as tightly as she did him.

It had been a comfort to her to hold her babes daily after Ned had went off to crush the Greyjoy's Rebellion not long after Galen's brith. Luckily all had gone well and Ned had come back to her alive, albeit with Theon Greyjoy; coming home once again with another child though this time one that belonged to someone else and not at all a bastard.

The boy was fine, a little withdrawn when he first arrived, but had become more open as time passed. While arrogant and prideful he did mind his manners and wasn't overtly hostile to any of the boys.

At this moment she watched with Sansa in her arms on a balcony as all the boys practiced with wooden swords, except Galen who was too young but watched them intensely.

Her youngest had earned the nickname the 'Shadow Wolf' because wherever Eddard, Robb or Jon went he was right behind them, ever silent and hidden in their shadow. Ever since he had learned to walk he hadn't been idle about exploring Winterfell. If he wasn't following his father or brothers then he was finding new places to explore within the castle's walls even if that meant following behind others to get there.

To her utter exasperation he loved to follow Jon around the most and seemed to have the strongest bond with him. Still, Catelyn took solace in the fact that though he didn't follow her around all the time that he spoke the most with her. Similar to his father, he was a boy of very few words, usually only speaking when he had something important to say or when he wanted something.

He would sit on her lap listening intently as she told him stories about her childhood, Riverrun, her parents, and her siblings. He would always ask her questions about the things he didn't understand as if to let her know he was truly paying attention. Sometimes it baffled her how intelligent he was for his age. Already he was speaking in near complete sentences, pausing as if gathering his thoughts before speaking, learning and writing his numbers and letters a lot faster than Robb had and was well on his way to reading.

Maester Luwin was astounded at his pace of learning, unsure of what to attribute it to. Though they had asked him to look into Galen's weird eye coloring, the man had found no precedence of such a thing. However, Old Nan had given her theory that he was a gift from the Old Gods imbued with magical power once held by Starks. While Ned and Luwin had completely dismissed her theory Catelyn hadn't done so as quickly. After all, nothing was impossible. The Targaryns had wielded dragons, the bones of them in King's Landing was proof enough.

Catelyn smiled as she watched Galen cheer on his brothers and Theon to do their best.

Still, whether Galen was a gift from the Gods or just a boy with extraordinary intelligence and a distinctive physical appearance, she would love him with all her heart just like she loved Ned and the rest of her family.

* * *

It was too warm.

For some reason this was a feeling he always had while inside the castle, even sometimes outside of it when his mother bundled him too warmly.

He had once asked his brothers and Theon while playing outside if they were hot. They had all looked at him strangely before saying no or in Theon's case saying that it was too _cold_ if anything. He hadn't bothered to ask again after that.

Right now he felt warmer than usual as he watched the older boys spar. It seemed like a lot of fun. He wished he could join them but they said he was too young. Instead he cheered them on, not exactly sure of what to say but hoping he sounded encouraging.

Getting a little bored of watching them strike each other he looked around for anything interesting. He spotted his mother on a balcony holding his little sister Sansa. He waved at her when her eyes landed on him; she smiled warmly waving with her free hand.

Satisfied, he went back to observing the sparring match until his mother called them all inside for lunch.

After lunch and a short nap Galen when off to do his favorite activity: exploring Winterfell. Galen's goal was the same as usual, to find out where that constant thrumming he always felt around him originated, especially beneath his feet. So far he'd explored the main parts of the castle but hadn't gotten around to the uninhabited parts.

Though that wasn't for a lack of trying on his part. Every time he got anywhere near the abandoned parts of Winterfell an adult of some kind would always show up and usher him away as if by magic.

However, he had a great plan today. Instead of going to his destination through the castle he would enter where he wanted to go from the outside. Walking through the castle and waving at all the people he encountered Galen entered the courtyard and made to pretend playing with the snow that had fallen from an unusually heavy snowfall for summer.

His hope was that everyone would see him just playing around and slowly forget about him long enough to sneak away unnoticed.

Just as he figured the coast was clear Galen caught a slight movement on the ground out of the corner of his eye. Turning he saw what looked like a white tail jump through the snow. Curious, Galen looked around to see if anyone was looking at him, satisfied that he wasn't being paid attention to he moved to chase after the creature.

It was a lot faster than he expected and it was hard for his short legs to keep up with it, but as he ran he got a clearer view of what he was chasing. It was a pure white like the dresses he had seen his mother and sister wearing with a ball of a tail, soft looking fur, long floppy ears and was hopping along at a fast pace.

Minutes later and he was still following the creature with his eyes glued to it not wanting to lose it in the snow, until he tripped. Falling down Galen felt a stinging pain in his palms and on his knees. Choking back a cry he pulled himself up while looking down to see that he had tripped over a tree root. Looking for the tree itself Galen was surprised to see it was the Heart Tree in the godswood. Apparently he had traveled a lot farther than he thought after the weird creature.

For a moment Galen stood transfixed looking at the weird tree with its human looking face. The red white bark, red leaves and red sap dripping down it into the eyes making it look like the face was crying, which was eerie considering the face on the tree looked like it was in agony.

Remembering what had led him here in the first place he looked around to see the creature was taking a drink from the small pond by the Heart Tree. Eager to get a closer look at the he moved cautiously towards it trying not to startle it like he had seen people do with horses and dogs.

When he was almost two steps from the creature it raised up one of its ears before turning around to stare at him with its blue eyes. The two stared at each other, neither one moving, then without warning the creature began to hop away around the pond.

"Wait!" he cried moving to chase after it.

Just as he reached out his arms to catch the creature he felt his foot slip and his body tilt sideways. Galen threw out his hands to try and balance himself but it was too late. He felt himself plunge into the cold water of the pond.

Galen's first thought was to immediately begin panicking; he had no idea how to swim nor any idea about how deep this pond was. While flailing his arms around he used his feet to try and gain some footing. It was for naught. He only felt himself sink in deeper towards the bottom.

Desperation began to creep in as he prayed to the very Heart Tree he was drowning besides that someone would find him. In retrospect his previous idea of escaping from his watcher's to explore the castle seemed so foolish now.

He half opened his mouth to scream before remembering that you were supposed to hold your breath underwater else you drowned or drowned faster as was his case. The water was just as dark within it as it looked on the surface. He couldn't see a thing above or below him, not even his arms as he thrashed about.

Idly he noted that he wasn't hot anymore and that the thrumming sensation he always felt was even stronger underwater, tangible even.

_Does the thrumming I feel have something to do with water?_

Galen is broken out of his thoughts when he feels his feet touch the bottom of the pond. The pond wasn't as deep as he thought, though it was just enough to drown him under it.

_How long is drowning supposed to take?_

His limbs had long since gotten tired and started to burn from his exertions so he'd stopped struggling. Still, wasn't this supposed to hurt? The way Theon told it your lungs would burn then when you could hold your breath no longer your mouth would open involuntarily for air though all you would get is a mouth and throat full of water.

Why wasn't this happening to him? Of course, he wasn't complaining that he wasn't drowning but shouldn't someone like him who couldn't swim be dead now? Yet, all he felt was calm, that persistent thrumming, and just nice. The water was no water in his mouth to choke on and his breathing…..

His breathing? No water?!

He was breathing! Galen could feel his eyes widening though he could see nothing. How was he breathing in water? Why hadn't his lungs filled with water after he had opened his mouth? Again, not that he was complaining but how was this possible? Had the Gods heard his cries?

And how long would their mercy last?

With this thought in mind Galen started walking trying to find a wall around the pond. If things weren't so serious he would laugh out loud at how funny it felt to walk underwater. After grasping blindly for some time he eventually found a solid wall on side of him. Digging his fingers into the dirt and finding a foothold Galen started to very slowly climb out of the pond.

As he got nearer to what he hoped was the surface he could hear what sounded like muffled noises above him. Maybe people had come looking for him? Or maybe it was a predator? Or wildlings?

These thoughts momentarily made him stop climbing as fear started to seep in that he was leaving one bad situation for another. However, he pushed his fear aside summoning his courage. He would face whatever was on the surface like a true Stark. Besides, he couldn't stay in the water forever.

Continuing up the wall Galen felt his fingers breakthrough the surface. Feeling relief at having made it to the surface he quickly hefted himself up and over the wall unto the cold ground. He sucked in wide gulps of air even though he didn't really need too, but did so anyway to really reassure himself that he was alive and not dreaming.

Feeling and seeing solid ground that wasn't underwater beneath his body helped him to release his doubts. Pushing himself up onto his knees Galen felt something soft brush over his fingers. Startled, he looked down to see the same creature he was chasing right beside him sniffing at his fingers with its floppy ears perked up.

Galen blankly stared at the creature slightly confused at its presence. He had been chasing after this thing, almost drowned for it, and now it had come to him without any provocation. He sighed as he reached out and pet the creature that simply accepted his touch and continued sniffing him,

_How did I get myself into this mess?_

"GALEN!"

Galen's head shot up as he heard his name called. The creature, seemingly started by the noise, began to hop away from him. He let it go as he waited for his name to be yelled again.

He would have gone and found the voice himself but he felt so tired. It was a struggle just sitting up on his knees. It would be better to conserve his strength for yelling back so they could find him.

"GALEN!"

"I'M BY THE HEART TREE!" he yelled as loud as he could.

The voices of several people and him yelling back went on two more times before his father and several other people emerged through the trees running towards him.

"Son, are you alright?!" Ned scooped up Galen into his arms checking him over for any injuries.

"I'm fine Father. I just fell into the pond," he said weakly.

"Fell into the pond!" yelled the shocked voice of a man.

Galen saw a stricken look on his father's face. "You fell into the pond?" he asked in disbelief. "How did you get out?"

Galen shook his head. "I don't know. I think it was the Gods. I could breathe under water Father! It allowed me to climb up the sides of the pond and get myself out."

There were gasps from those around them at his words along with mutters of praise for the Gods along with a smattering of disbelief.

Ned looked speechless, his face a mixture of shock and disbelief before he adopted a blank mask, though his eyes betrayed what his face had concealed.

"Let's get you home before you get sick and your mother worries herself to death," was all he said as he hugged Galen tighter and started for Winterfell with him in his arms.

Galen simply kept his face buried in his father's chest not bothering to look and see who came to look for him. Today had been far more adventurous than he had planned and was sure after they checked and made sure he was fine that he would receive quite the lecture for running off without someone with him.

Though he had learned more about that thrumming feeling and now knew he could breathe underwater, possibly. He would see another time if he could repeat the experience. For now he would let his mother fuss over him and thank the Gods for keeping him alive.

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**A/N:** I want to thank all those who favorite and followed, especially those who took the time to review. Please review even if it's a few words. The feedback lets me know how I'm doing and if I can improve on something.

Unfortunately, I have to say it will be awhile till my next chapter because I have to turn my computer in to be fixed. Hopefully it won't take too long but considering how much stuff is broken it might take a while.

Also, ten points to whoever can figure out why Galen could breathe underwater. Also, a cookie if you know why he felt the thrumming under his feet in Winterfell. Hint: It has to do with Winterfell's foundations.

If you're wondering why he didn't know what a rabbit was, he's three so he wouldn't have had much opportunity to leave Winterfell let alone see a rabbit outside it.

**Guest**: The reason that there is a three year difference between Galen and Robb is that there is a three year difference between Robb and Sansa in the books. Basically Galen takes Sansa's place and she is born a year after him.

When a Game of Thrones starts the ages will be: Robb-15, Jon-14, Galen-12, Sansa-11, Arya-9, Bran-7, and Rickon-5. As you can see the only change is Robb and Rickon's ages.

Hoping to update a lot sooner than expected!


	3. Revelations, Part I

**I do not own A Song of Ice and Fire, it belongs to GRRM.**

**A/N**: Ages: Theon-10, Robb-7, Jon 6, Galen-4, Sansa-3, Arya-1.

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**All That Matters**

_The cheers of the crowd were deafening. There were hundreds if not thousands in attendance, all from the peasants to the King of the Seven Kingdoms. It seemed an quite an enormous tourney was being held._

_At the center of attention was the joust. Given that the time was past midday it was likely the final joust of the day. Two names were being shouted out repeatedly by the crowd. _

_Rhaegar! Barristan! Rhaegar! Barristan!_

_There was a man each on both ends of the jousting field, armored up and mounted on their horses with lances in hand. The two got into position though their helms were still raised. Visible were the eyes of each jouster. One fairly young with dark lilac eyes, a sliver of silver-gold hair peaking from above the helm; the other a man grown though slightly aged with blue eyes. _

_At a signal from the King they lowered their helms and began to gallop towards each other. The first round their lances struck true giving off the bang and screech of metal on metal, yet neither was moved from their steeds. Though their lances were splintered into pieces requiring them to pick up new ones. _

_On and on it went for five more rounds with each having to pick up a new lance as they broke over and over again with each clash._

_Once more they lined up preparing to strike each other down to claim the win. At the signal they were off charging straight at each other. Barristan's lance that had struck true the last six times glanced off Rhaegar's side below his chest. However, Rhaegar's aim was true and his lance crashed into Barristan's shoulder sending the knight falling off his horse and crashing to the ground. _

_The crowd roared, cheering Rhaegar's name over and over. _

_Rhaegar took off his helmet displaying long sliver-gold locks to the crowd as he steered his horse towards the King's box. The King, a gaunt looking man with long dirty and unkempt sliver-gold hair on which a crown sat upon sneeringly declared Rhaegar the victor. _

_The young man was handed a wreath of blue winter roses. He steered his horse seemingly towards the King's box among cheers from the crowd but he simply passed it by. _

_At that moment the cheers from the crowd started to die down into confused murmurs as the man continued to a destination unknown to them, until finally he stopped in front of one of the stands. Immediately in front of him were a young man and woman that looked identical to each other with dark brown hair, grey eyes and long faces, yet they held a wild beauty. _

_Rhaegar lifted up the wreath and lightly tossed it onto the lap of the woman in front of him. _

_At that moment all sound ceased and silence fell upon the grounds. In one act all smiles had fallen from everyone's faces. _

_While the prince seemed unconcerned as he moved away from the woman, the same could not be said for her. _

_Her face was a mask of shock as she looked down upon the wreath which proclaimed her the Queen of Beauty and Love. _

* * *

_There was a group of men on horses riding with haste on the King's Road. At the head of the group was a young man with a beard, long dark brown hair and grey eyes bearing the sigil of House Stark on his clothes while the others had the sigils of the Houses Glover, Royce, Arryn and Mallister. _

_They swiftly entered a large city riding straight for a large structure on top of a hill. Bypassing shouting guards they burst into the keep with the man in front yelling, his face twisted in anger. _

"_Rhaegar! Rhaegar Targaryen! Do you hear me?! I want my sister back! Come out you coward! Come out and die!"_

_The man went on ranting and raving repeatedly asking for Rhaegar to come and die with his sword drawn. _

_Guards soon poured into hall and surrounded him and his companions holding them at sword point. The guards then moved slightly aside allowing for a small gap to show. _

_A gaunt man with sliver-gold hair and beard dressed in fine silks with a crown on his head filled in the gap. At his back were three men in white cloaks. _

"_Who are you to come to my castle, my domain, asking about my son?" demanded King Aerys._

* * *

"_Rickard Stark. You are here to answer for the crime of treason against the Crown by you and your son. You have wished for a trail by combat, have you not?" sneered the King. He sat upon the Iron Throne with a cruel self-satisfied smile with a mad gleam in his eye._

_A middle aged man dressed in full armor stepped forward towards the throne bowing. "Yes, I have demanded a trial by combat, your Grace. May I ask who is to be my opponent?" The man briefly looked around the throne room to see if he could spot the person for himself. _

_The room only consisted of the King, Queen, several members of the Kingsguard, Princess Elia, Varys, Jon Connington, Brandon Stark, and one of the King's pyromancers named Rosart._

_The King smirked down at Rickard. "Why the only champion there can be for a Targaryen. Fire of course."_

_A confused yet guarded expression came over Rickard's face. "I'm sorry, I don't understand your Grace."_

_The King sneered. "What is it that you don't understand? You must fight fire if you wish to be cleared of the charges against you."_

_Rickard was about to speak but was cut off by the King. "Guards! Seize him!"_

_Rickard moved to draw his sword but it was too late. The guards ripped it out his hands and proceeded to tie him up. The King motioned to Rosart who gave a signal in which the remaining guards began to drag over piles of wood along with a long thick pole. _

"_What are you doing?" shouted Brandon. "You can't do this! Stop!" The young Stark began to struggle against his guards trying to free himself of his shackles. _

"_Who are you to order me!" yelled the King. "I am you King! I will do as I please! As a matter of a fact…" the King paused seeming to think before a wicked smile crossed his face. _

"_How about I give you a chance to help your father, boy?"_

_Brandon briefly stopped his struggle towards his father to look at the King. Already Rickard Stark was tied to the pole in the middle of the wood. The pyromancer Rosart started pouring oil from a pot onto the wood as Rickard cursed him and Aerys. _

"_Guards, release him of his shackles. I'll give him a chance to help his father. Someone fetch a long cord, quickly." The King had a twistedly gleeful expression on his face._

_The guards removed Brandon's shackles but restrained him with their hands. _

"_You," the King pointed at a guard, "Place a sword five feet in front of him." The guard did as he was bid. A man soon came back with a leather cord. "Good, good. Place it around his neck and tie the other end tight and taunt to that pillar over there."_

_The guard hesitated at the order. "What are you waiting for?! Your King commands you!" The guard proceeded to do as he was ordered. _

"_No! What is this? This isn't a fair chance!" screamed Brandon beginning to struggle once again. _

"_Fair chance? I said I would give you a chance boy. Not a fair one," sneered Aerys._

_Once everything was done as the King commanded he stood up from his throne. "I King Aerys, Second of His Name, Lord Protector of the Realm, King of the Andals, Rhoynar and First Men, and the Lord of the Seven Kingdoms do hereby declare this trial to begin!"_

_As soon as the words were spoken Rosart with a torch in hand approached the pyre and with no hesitation threw the torch onto it. Immediately, Rickard Stark was engulfed in bright green flames. Unholy screams of pain began to issue forth from his mouth. _

_Brandon Stark screamed for his father as he struggled against the noose around his neck, strangling himself as he reached out, trying to grasp the longsword in front of him to save his father. _

_The King smiled with glee seemingly aroused by the fire. Only the pyromancer Rosart seemed to share his feelings. Amidst the screams and burning flesh, the rest of the room's occupants either looked away in disgusted terror or looked upon the scene, transfixed with horrified and sickened expressions as they watched a father burn to death and his son dying of strangulation as he tried in vain to save his father._

* * *

He woke up screaming.

To him it felt like a sudden occurrence, transitioning from dreaming to wakefulness, but he knew he had to have to been screaming long before then because when he woke up his mother was holding him in her arms, rocking him back and forth.

"Mom, my dream.." he croaked, his voice hoarse. He wanted to tell her about what he'd seen but every time he even thought about it his throat filled with bile and he felt terror encompass his very being causing him to quiver. This was more terrifying than when he had fallen in the pond by the heart tree.

"Shh," she said holding him tightly, "It's alright my son. I'm here with you, I'll protect you. I promise."

Instead he simply let his mother hold him. He knew when Robb and Theon found out about this they would tease him endlessly, but he didn't care. This was what he needed.

Galen didn't know why he'd been made to see such a horrible thing or those other weird scenes but he hoped he soon forgot the last one.

What had been done to them….

And they were Starks too! They were….they were his uncle and grandfather. And if what he remembered about his aunt was correct then that woman at the beginning was her, Lyanna.

He'd been told his grandfather and uncle were killed in a horrible way by the Mad King from his father, but he'd never been told exactly how it happened. Now after seeing it, if what he saw was true and not just his own twisted imagination, then he could understand the pained and sad look on his father and mother's faces when they spoke of their deaths.

He would have to ask Maester Luwin about his dreams to see if they were based on reality. But that could wait until later.

For now he snuggled deeper into his mother's embrace letting the soothing sound of her voice and heartbeat lull him back to sleep.

* * *

Galen laughed as he chased Jon around the castle. They had just escaped their lessons with Maester Luwin and were playing a game of tag Jon initiated the moment they stepped out. Robb was currently with Theon, the two opting out of playing tag to instead sharpen their swordsmanship skills.

Being with his father and siblings that morning had helped him out of the melancholy brought about by the nightmares he'd had last night. It'd also helped that his mother had doted on him more excessively than usual that morning to make sure he was fine.

While he hadn't managed to completely push the images of what he'd seen out of his head, they weren't completely on his mind as they had been earlier.

He'd also decided to keep what he'd dreamed of to himself for the time being. While the first couple of dreams he could talk about with ease, the last one he could not. He'd need some time to….be able to recall it without instantly becoming physically ill.

"Come on Galen! If you don't catch up I'll leave you in the dust!"

Shaking out of his thoughts Galen grinned as he picked up the pace to catch up to Jon. Even though he was younger than his brothers and Theon he was practically the same height as them, a fact that seemed to annoy them since they couldn't really call him 'little brother.'

Flying past several of the occupants of the castle who simply looked at them with amusement, it wasn't long before there game took them into the less inhabited parts of the castle. As Jon turned a corner Galen was finally able to catch up to him and tap his back before turning and running the opposite way.

He had no idea where he going since this was a part of the castle even he hadn't explored yet. Still he trusted in his and Jon's ability to find their way back. Or at the very least someone would find them.

Hearing Jon's footsteps catching up to his Galen sped up and took a left around a corner only to run smack into a door.

"Oww!" he moaned as he fell down. Sitting flat on his behind Galen raised a hand to rub his aching forehead. _I really ought to have peaked around the corner instead of running blindly. _

As he stopped to assess the damage to himself Jon caught up with him.

"Galen, are you alright? I heard you sound like you were in pain."

"Yeah, I ran straight into this stupid door."

Jon's face changed from one full of worry to one full of laughter. "Really? Then how is the door the stupid one if you weren't looking where you were going?"

"Shut up," Galen said with a scowl.

Still silently laughing Jon stuck out his hand for Galen to take. Still scowling Galen took his hand helping to pull him up. Aside from stinging palms, a sore behind and a bit of a headache he was fine.

He turned to stare at the door he'd run into. It was made of a heavy looking white wood. In fact if he had to guess he would say it was the wood from a wierwood tree.

"Hey Jon. What do you thinks behind this door? It looks like the wood comes from a heat tree."

Jon shrugged, "I don't know. Maybe it's a storage closet or something. I've not been to this part of the castle before."

"Me neither. Wanna see what's in there?" he asked mischievously.

His brother frowned in disapproval. "We don't know what might be behind it and we could get in trouble for it. Plus it might be dark and we don't have a torch."

"Come on Jon, it'll be fun," Galen cajoled. He knew the only trouble Jon was really worried about was from his mother who had always regarded Jon coldly.

"But…we don't even know if the door is unlocked," Jon hedged. Galen grinned at his response; it was so easy to get Jon to cave in. Jon was his favorite brother and he was his. They always had the best time when they were together.

Moving closer to the door Galen reached out his hand to pull on the door. The moment his fingers touched the door Galen felt a tingling go through his fingers. Startled he momentarily pulled his hand back.

"Is something wrong?"

"No, no. Just got this weird feeling when I touched the door."

"See, I told you. It's a sign we should turn around and go back."

Galen simply shook his head. "Nope. It's a sign that we should keep on going." Steeling himself Galen reached for the door again. Feeling the tingling again, he pushed it aside and pulled on the door.

The door opened with not a squeak of the hinges or scrape across the floor. Even more surprising was the fact that behind the door there were lit torches. There were also a set of stairs going downwards behind the door.

"Look, someone's been here earlier," gestured Galen.

Jon shook his head. "That's just another reason why we shouldn't go in there."

"Come on Jon! Where's your sense of adventure or bravery?"

"I don't know…"

"Look if we get caught I will say it was my idea, okay? Please." Galen proceeded to give his brother the saddest look he could muster.

Jon stared at the room behind the door for a while contemplating things. Finally, he looked back at Galen, his mind made up. "Alright, I'll go with you. But if something happens down there then we leave immediately and back the way we came. Deal?"

"Deal!"

With that settled Galen and Jon began there descent down the stairs. Down, down, and down they went even though the stairs twisted in different directions twice. Idly Galen wondered exactly where they were located in Winterfell besides obviously under it. He waited for Jon to tell him they should turn back as wherever these stairs lead they were a long ways underground. Yet, he said nothing. It seemed Jon was just as curious as he was.

Galen couldn't help but notice that the farther down they went the hotter it seemed to get. Luckily they weren't in their heavy furs else they would be boiling right now. He wished he knew who had built all these stairs and who had been here previously because it had to have been exhausting lighting all these torches and traveling down and back.

Finally, after what seemed like hours they reached the bottom of the stairs to see a door at the end of them. They were both visibly sweating and panting from their descent. Looking back at Jon to gage his readiness, he saw him give a small nod. Taking a deep breath Galen grasped the door handle and pulled it open.

He was astounded at what he found. A hot spring. Though not just any hot spring, it was the hot spring his father and Maester Luwin said was what kept Winterfell so warm in the inside and Galen could see why. The room was completely massive.

It stretched as far as his eyes could see, perhaps even farther than that. The cavern seemed like it not only encompassed the entire foundations of Winterfell but also its surrounding grounds. Which was very possible since when he and Jon were very near the corners of Winterfell when they found the door that lead them here.

Taking some steps forward he couldn't help but be more awed by the time and effort it must have taken Bran the Builder to build Winterfell over this place considering it had to be below even the dungeons. He could more readily believe Old Nan's stories about how Bran wielded magic. It seemed an impossible task for anyone otherwise. Briefly he wondered how stable Winterfell was over the place.

Galen turned to look at Jon and saw he was just as awestruck.

"We found it Jon! We found the hot spring under Winterfell! How amazing is this?!" Galen said with a silly grin on his face.

Jon seemingly snapped out of the trance he was in to turn to look at him dumbly for a second until his words registered, and then he too started grinning.

"It's pretty darn amazing."

As they moved farther in to the room Galen noticed that there weren't any torches lighting up the cavern. Rather it was illuminated by some type of stone, crystal, or gem that glowed in colors of bright white, yellow, and blue. The material practically covered every surface from the walls, to the ceiling, to the floors in big formations.

The spring itself wasn't actually one big spring but several dozen ones in different shapes and sizes. The biggest he could see was at least three times the size of the dining hall. The reflection of the crystals off the water was in colors of yellow, blue, grey and white.

The heat radiating from the springs was visible from the plums of steam wafting lazily up into the air. Now that he was further inside he noticed how misty the whole place looked. Luckily the light source was bright enough to cut through the worst of it still making things pretty visible.

"Do you think there's anything down here besides the spring?" asked Jon.

"Maybe. The way everyone has spoken about the spring, they say it like a door doesn't exist to be able to see it. Though I wonder how no one has found this place before us. Or if they did they decided not to tell anyone."

"Hmm," was all Jon said.

"Well, while we're here, you wanna go looking around?" Galen began to shrug off his furs till he only had a light tunic on, setting the furs on the floor. Jon seeing what he was doing followed his example.

They first decided to walk straight ahead till they reached the end of the cavern; there were two different turns to go down on the left side which they suspected lead towards the godswood from the roots they saw protruding from the walls. Passing by all the pools of water they looked mesmerizingly at the colors reflecting off the water and how it lightly bubbled and swayed in all of them never staying still.

Galen and Jon both took turns running their hands through the water's surface. Though the water was hot it wasn't unbearably so. The water felt great to Galen. He wished he could go swimming in it.

Galen didn't know what it was but he felt full of energy here, he felt powerful. It felt like the very walls were pulsing all around him, nothing at all like how all of Winterfell and the grounds outside only thrummed with the feeling. Galen still couldn't quite describe it but it felt powerful.

After what felt like a long time they finally reached the end of the massive cavern. While they hadn't discovered anything more interesting than the various pools, it was still worth the trip.

Returning back towards the front the two entered the first turn on the way back. The entrance was narrower and the pools in it were no bigger than the size of a bath tub and the roots from trees were more prominent. Several minutes of walking later the two came to what looked like a type of altar.

It was made up of the giant roots of a wierwood tree. Running down the roots and pooling onto the rocky floor was the red sap that, aside from the faces, made wierwoods so infamous. Settled in front of the tree, half sunken down in the ground was a sword.

"Jon…"

"I know."

Galen began to move towards the altar.

"Galen! We don't know if it's safe or not. Maybe we should go get dad and come back."

Galen frowned. "Why? It's under a wierwood tree. We worship the Old Gods, so nothing bad should happen."

"But it could! We're here all alone, nobody knows where we are. They could be looking for us right now."

Galen knew Jon had a point. If something happened to them there was a good chance that no one would find them. Still… This altar or this sword, the whole place really was calling to him but especially here. He needed to get closer, he needed to touch that sword. Something told him if he did that it would be to his benefit.

"I know, just… Let me see if I can get the sword. If something happens, then just run and go get dad…"

"No! I'm the eldest so that means you have to listen to me and I'm telling you that we go get dad and come back," said Jon adamantly. He was standing at his full height which was maybe an inch or two taller than Galen but he looked as intimidating as father for a moment.

"Hmm," Galen hummed before he took his chance. Before Jon could stop him he ran towards the sword and grabbed it with both hands. The moment his hands touched it Galen felt a warmth flow through him along with a feeling of rightness.

Following this feeing even as he felt Jon grab hold of his shoulder he pulled with all his might. Like the ground wasn't made of the hard rock he felt under his feet the sword was easily pulled out. Staggering back a bit at the weight and length of the sword he bumped into Jon knocking him to the ground.

Galen barely managed to steady himself from falling too. Once he felt balanced enough he held out the sword in front of him holding onto it with two hands. It was even more magnificent than he had thought.

It was a greatsword for sure with its two and a half hand length hilt that had a slight curve to it. The pommel was an inch long and cylindrical with a large circled light blue diamond set in it. The grip was round, two inches long, thick and made of a whitish gray metal. Its design gave the appearance of cracked frost which he could actually feel under his fingers. The lines even gave off a brilliant glow and were smooth to the touch making him suspect it was done with blue sapphires. The guard was six inches long across, a broad fuller made of the same color and material as the grip with another light blue diamond cut into a square shape in the middle; the ends were shaped into direwolf heads with yellow and red sapphires in the eyes respectively.

However, none of that compared to the sword's blade. It was like someone had forged a sword from ice itself. The blade was 32 inches long and 5 inches wide, thick, straight but with sharp serrated edges down both sides and the tip had a triangle point. Looking at the blade was like looking at a light blue clear piece of ice, he could even see his and Jon's reflection in it. It was smooth and quite cold to the touch. Galen couldn't help but be reminded of winter looking at it.

As he turned it around in his hands he noticed what looked like an inscription in the middle of the blade. Pulling it closer he was awed but not the least bit surprised at what it said: Winter Is Coming; the words of House Stark.

"Its…its…its…"

"It's absolutely amazing, glorious, awesome to the extreme," finished Jon for his brother.

All Galen could do was nod his head in agreement.

"Now let me see it. I think I deserve to since you completely disregarded my warming. Be lucky nothing bad happened."

"Now how can you be sure of that?"

Both Galen and Jon jumped about a mile high, Galen even dropping the sword in his fright. As it clanged to the ground the two swiftly turned around to be met with nothing in sight. Tense, they looked at each other in confusion until they heard someone clear their throat behind them.

Turing back around they were met with a sight straight out of one of Old Nan's tales. Standing there in all its ethereal glory was what could only be a ghost. The figure was male with long dark brown hair and a beard, a long face and had piercing gray eyes. He was dressed in heavy furs and looked every inch like a Northerner.

Galen blinked his eyes several times, even rubbing them trying to clear them of what obviously couldn't be there. No way was there a ghost standing in front of him, ghosts weren't real! Maester Luwin had told them all so!

"Jon…"

"I know. Maybe the heat's gotten to our heads and we're imagining things?"

The ghost chuckled at them. "Now why would you think that?"

Galen frowned. "Maybe it's because ghosts don't exist." Galen paused to think for a second. "Are you an Old God?"

The ghost chuckled again, even harder. "So you'll believe I'm a god first before you believe I'm a ghost? That seems like some pretty twisted logic."

"Well if you're not a ghost then what are you?" asked Jon

"Why, don't you recognize your oldest and greatest ancestor?"

At this they once again stared in shocked disbelief. They turned to look at each other before turning back towards the ghost.

"Bran the Builder?!" they both shouted in unison.

"The one and only," he said with a wolfish grin.

* * *

**A/N:** Hey guys, sorry that this update has taken so long. Basically this chapter is a two parter. I wanted to get this out because things were starting to drag on with me making this one super long chapter so I broke it up to freshen things up as far as my writing things go. Also, I hope I did characterizing a young Jon well. Let me know what you think.

I'll hopefully try and have the next chapter out a lot sooner than this one. Thank all of you for favorite, reviewing and following this story. Also, thank you for patiently waiting.

Much will be revealed in the next chapter! You'll also get a POV from Ned next chapter too!

Please Read and Review!


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